AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What the hell are you doing here?” Wilson says by way of a greeting. His face is close-to-stroking-out red.
I could turn the table on him and ask him what the fuck he’s doing here, but I don’t expect that question will go down well, especially if he is part of a sting.
“You and that fucking bitch have been nothing but trouble.” Pure naked hostility sharpens his vowels, threatens to butcher me.
The soldier shoves me toward the warehouse. “Move!”
I’m escorted into the building. The musty, metal tang of abandonment lingers in the air. The large, cavernous space is empty, no nearby hiding places should I be foolish enough to make a break for it. The soldier walks a few paces behind me, his pistol aimed at my back.
I’ve been in some damn serious situations while deployed. Have nearly died a time or two. But I’ve never been held captive. Never felt so defenseless.
My only hope is my brothers have realized I’m in a shitload of trouble and have called in for reinforcements. Reinforcements that don’t answer to Chief Wilson.
“What are you going to do with him?” Wilson asks, sounding surprisingly unnerved at the situation. At least he doesn’t have a gun at his back. He’ll get to walk away. Walk away and abuse his wife again.
My gaze catches on a doorway that could lead to the warehouse offices. But it’s ten or more yards away. These men won’t let me get that far before gunning me down.
“On your knees!” The shrapnel-sharp voice behind me is that of the special forces soldier. The air in my lungs rushes out in a hard breath.
Shit. Fuck. Shit. Fuck.
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Wilson’s tone is a mix of commanding and scared shitless. I don’t move, waiting to see how this plays out. “You can’t just execute him. You do that, and we’ll have all sorts of law enforcement converging on Maple Ridge because of an execution-style hit on one of its citizens. You need to make it look like an accident. Something that doesn’t result in too many questions.”
“You’re the chief of police,” the man in black says, voice ice smooth. “I’m sure you can cover the trail. That’s why I brought you in. You fucked up. You deal with the problem. This is Troy Carson, right?”
I stiffen at my name. I have no idea who in hell the man is, yet he knows me. What else does he know about me?
“That’s right.”
“His body will be found in the mountains. He slipped off a hiking trail. End of problem.”
“With assault rifle bullets inside him?” Wilson’s shit-you’re-a-moron tone won’t win him any fans with this group. “At least make it look like a hunting accident by a poacher.”
“I’ll be long gone by the time his body’s found, so you deal with it in whatever way you see fit.” The man in black’s attention swivels to me. “Now on your knees, Carson, or else your pretty girlfriend will be the next to disappear. Savannah Townsend, isn’t it?”
I arrange my forehead into a confused frown, not wanting to confirm he’s correct, even though Wilson already knows the truth. “No idea what you’re talking about.” How does this man know who she is? And so much about me?
He makes a small, amused sound but doesn’t elaborate on what he knows about Savannah and Jess. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of his men has killed a cop at some point just to keep their organization out of trouble, so I doubt he would care if she were a cop killer.
“On your knees!” the former special forces soldier barks, and I have no doubt his bite is every bit as bad as his bark.
I start to lower to my knees.
“FBI! Put your weapons down. You’re under arrest.”
Shock widens my eyes. It’s a voice I recognize. Ethan Philips.
I glance over my shoulder. Everyone has momentarily forgotten me, stunned at the turn of events. In that brief nanosecond, their guard is knocked off-kilter.
I take that tiny window where the soldier’s attention is pulled away from me, his pistol turning toward Ethan. I lunge at him. He’s large, but he’s not expecting my attack. And that gives me an advantage.
A very slight advantage. He has protective gear on and has backup from his men.
Ethan and I have nothing—other than my unarmed brothers. Who might not even realize I’m in trouble. At least Ethan has a gun, which is more than I have.
I curse under my breath that my brothers and I weren’t better prepared for this mission. But the original mission had been to protect Violet and to get her and Sophie out of the house if we suspected she was in grave danger. We hadn’t planned for any of this.
The former special forces soldier points his pistol at me. I slap his hand to the side, grappling for control. I can’t even worry about the five other men surrounding us. I just hope I’m moving enough to keep from being an easy target.
